Board approves $83,000‑ish contract to support NCLB waiver school pairings amid public questions

The board approved a consent‑calendar contract to engage California Education Partners to support communities of practice and school pairings tied to the district's NCLB waiver and School Quality Improvement System. The contract and its background materials were discussed in the meeting and some commissioners were offered an overview by staff prior to the vote.

Public commenter Dennis Kelly questioned the contract’s scope, deliverables and vendor capacity and said he did not see a clear agenda or evidence of past activity on the vendor’s website. "Tonight, you have once again $83,000 commitment to the core waiver office for somewhat...ill‑defined services," Kelly said, pressing staff for clarification about what the partnership will do and where it will operate.

Deputy Superintendent Guerrero responded that the contract was intended to facilitate school pairings and communities of practice and that staff could describe which schools are designated as priority, reward and focus schools and what activities the partnership would support. Staff said backup materials had been provided to commissioners in advance.

The board proceeded to a roll‑call vote on the consent calendar item and the item passed (transcript records '6 ayes' on the motion). Staff characterized the contract as part of a broader set of interventions and supports funded from federal waiver‑linked funds for priority schools.

The contract passed as part of the consent calendar; no detailed schedule of deliverables was read into the record during the public discussion.